Shuttlers must pull their socks up
There’s no doubt that badminton is a premier sport in our country. It has produced medals at the last two Olympics—London and Rio de Janeiro—and at the World Championships too. There are shuttlers who have occupied the number one spot. With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponed to this summer, India is looking at the sport with a billion hopes.
The way the first competition of the year panned out, the Indian team would love to scoff at it and march on with more focus and determination. There were issues off court when Saina Nehwal and H S Prannoy tested positive and were withdrawn at the Yonex Thailand Open, only to be reinstated after more tests. On court, there were disappointments too. P V Sindhu and Saina, who were participating in a competition for the first time since the lockdown, did not prosper.
Nor did the men led by Kidambi Srikanth, who had to withdraw due to a calf muscle strain in the second round. Others perished too. Fitness seems to be an issue. So does lack of match practice and form, which has been a thorn for some time now. But what would bother the team most is the performance of other nations and that the field was depleted after Japan and China pulled out. The Olympic qualification is set to begin next month and will end with the India Open (May 11-16). The qualification will be determined from the Race to Tokyo Rankings published on 18 May 2021. As of now, only four—P V Sindhu, B Sai Praneeth and the doubles men’s pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty—are eligible for the Olympics. There were seven in the Rio one and five in London.
Former World No. 1 Srikanth and London Olympic bronze medallist Saina have to face daunting challenges. They have to reach the quarters and semifinals in at least two-three qualifiers to get a chance. If they fall short, it will be a blot on the sport. There is no dearth of support from the sports ministry and the Badminton Association of India. From foreign coaches and support staff to training at academies of their choices, they have it all. Then to be elite, performance is the scale where it will be measured. It’s a simple case of now or never.